Leonard Bernstein’s children defend Bradley Cooper amid ‘Jewface’ controversy

After Netflix released the trailer of Bradley Cooper's Maestro, a film about Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia Montealegre, viewers criticized Bradley Cooper's prosthetic nose as an inauthentic portrayal of Jewish people, known as "Jewface."

In response to the backlash, Bernstein's children defended Cooper's decision, stating that he used makeup to enhance his resemblance to their father. The A Star Is Born actor directed the film and stars as Bernstein alongside Carey Mulligan as Montealegre.

Jamie, Alexander and Nina Bernstein wrote: "Bradley Cooper included the three of us along every step of his amazing journey as he made his film about our father. We were touched to the core to witness the depth of his commitment, his loving embrace of our father’s music, and the sheer open-hearted joy he brought to his exploration."

They continued, "It breaks our hearts to see any misrepresentations or misunderstandings of his efforts. It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose. Bradley chose to use makeup to amplify his resemblance, and we’re perfectly fine with that. We’re also certain that our dad would have been fine with it as well."

"Any strident complaints around this issue strike us above all as disingenuous attempts to bring a successful person down a notch — a practice we observed all too often perpetrated on our own father."

"At all times during the making of this film, we could feel the profound respect and yes, the love that Bradley brought to his portrait of Leonard Bernstein and his wife, our mother Felicia. We feel so fortunate to have had this experience with Bradley, and we can’t wait for the world to see his creation," they concluded. 

Maestro will premiere at the 80th Venice Film Festival on Sept. 2. It will hit Netflix on Dec. 20.